King One Hot Pot - Saturday, 16 May 2015

I availed of one of these promo thingamabobs and bought 3 vouchers.

The place is on the second floor - right opposite chili's (a place i know very well as i love their fajitas), nice, relatively new and the staff are polite and courteous, and not just that, but eager to serve.  It was equipped with an elevator, which was a plus for me since i am disabled.  stairs can be difficult for me, particularly narrow, steep ones.

The winner in the appetizer section was the fresh ampalaya.  It had a dash of salt and garlic, some acetic acid (vinegar, that is).  The adobo eggs were alright but some were a tad burnt.  The tofu was fine, but my bro's fried tofu is much better.

We had a choice of soup, so we got the split version - but neither one satisfied me the way Luk Foo's soup did.  The viands were fine - the shrimps (my nephew who is allergic to shrimps was not with us) were small, but was okay.  The meats were not as interesting.

They were billed as the best hotpot.  not quite, not for me.
but it wasnt bad.

i'd have to vote Luk Foo still.
i must remember to eat at David's Tea House. I think i already forgot the taste - that is, if it is better than Luk Foo's or not.

Bradley's Bulalo at Tagaytay, near the Rotonda

well, so we had bulalo at Bradley's.

so we had Bulalo.  which is really nothing but bone marrow, beef and some veggies
since bulalo soup normally cooks all day, it is usually ready when one does order
always good with patis, red sili (crushed for the spice), and the tartness of calamansi

we had 2 salads - ensaladang ampalaya -- which had too much water, and tamed the taste too much
the mango salad - which almost had the same ingredients - tomatoes, onions, and bagoong, of course

then for an ender - we had inihaw na pusit, not as good as Muang Thai's but it was ok

then we had a lively debate about the real-or-fake-sunflowers that served as decor
since they were very far, we werent quite sure.

i was sure i had seen real sunflowers even bigger than those
but was not quite sure if what was on display was on real

finally, we asked someone to go over and look

.... shhhhh. it was fake

Hot Pot recs - Luk Foo and David's Tea House

i love hot pot, i think they call this shabu-shabu, a term i confuse with shawarma.

yes, i know. totally different but sometimes word associations can be iffy

but hot pot, yummy.  nothing to beat it.

we are a family who love soup, so hot pot is a favorite with us.

Luk Foo's hot pot is, to my -our taste, one of the best.

Unfortunately, not all Luk Foo places have hot pot.

In Luk Foo - you have to choose the items you want in the hot pot, there is regular beef, imported beef if you wish, pork, veggies (corn, bok choy, pechay, chinese cabbage, young onions, leeks), mushrooms (several kinds), fish/shrimp/squid balls, squid, shrimps (we couldnt have any as my nephew is allergic)....

There are only 2 - the one along E. Rod (cor. Araneta ave) and the one near the airport

The one near the airport has a ghost,and when we were there in 2011 (it really is too far otherwise) to have dinner with my brother - who was returning to the USA

I also tried David's hot pot - oh, also very good.  will visit again and this will probably be sooner than later since this is much nearer.  David's tea house is in the corner of morato and timog and is in the 2nd floor -----

at David's i was on solo flight so i couldnt have a lot of stuff as i wouldnt be able to finish it.  Still, it was good..

if you know of other hot pots, let me know.  Oh yes, i've tried tong yang - when it was along Quezon Ave.

PALAWAN TRIP -

It was my first trip to Puerto Princesa.

and it was a huey

here are the pics, the story to follow

at the airport

in the plane

Island hopping

Manny, Evelyn, me, Alice

Ka Lui food - really good food

Office Companions meet .... after times apart

it is always nice to touch base(s) with companions after a spell of distance of time and space

Last Friday, 17 October
At Sambokojin West - the following gathered to catch up with news about each other
Emily and Chito; Tina; Ging, Paulie, and Justine; Clare and Annabel; Hermie; Aris and family;
Fred; Albert; and the man-of-the-hour who handled the bill, Horace; and me

Albert was off farming, HT was working with an HMO in Makati (near STI where i used to work!), Fred was relaxing (nice to be retired), Emily and Chito were recharging, and Aris shared a bit of news about GSIS (he still has to share some more); and the rest were still with the same agency they were with, but perhaps with some changes.... in their lives.

I had cooked and eaten shrimps, loved the wrapped asparagus and mushrooms, enjoyed the fresh salad, and of course, the miso soup and the tempura.  Ging got a huge vat of ice cream that she shared.  That was the only sweet i got.  Good eats.

Payment time, 6 of us had discounts - Fred, Albert, Emily and Chito, HT, and I (i am a PWD, the rest were seniors) so a 20% discount for 6 wasnt bad at all....

pics to follow

Alfarsi - a Maginhawa place, with persian flavors

Alfarsi.
a small place near Savemore Anonas
persian food, it said in its small literature

Manny, Alice, and I decided to taste their persian food last Monday 13 October
mostly ground beef.  we liked the keema pie, and the wraps, and falafel was good
the place was small - it would fit about 7-10 small groups

good eats, i thought.  will eat there again, or perhaps have something delivered

From double 10 in '64 to double 10 in 2014, 50 years in Kamias

50 years.  Golden Times.
To live, laugh, love, and cry.  Good times through Bad times and Best Times.

Lovely people who have gone ahead, have stayed with me
People who stayed true.  Judas kissers.

i love being home.

i love cooking, especially for other people.

food, glorious food.

i ordered turkey, pancit luglug, lengua estofado ... in white sauce, fish fillet
i cooked roast beef (medium rare), roast duck, embo-cheat style, and wrapped ground beef, mechado (which didnt get to the table, fresh veggie salad, green peas with quail eggs in butter (yum), and i tested a cheat style-pancit luglug.  i know how to make the old style difficult luglug.

guests who came -
my sibs-jonas with jap and yet with patti, patrick and dino, cousins grace and bert, mario and minda, israel and efren, officemates - ging, paulie, clarits, annabel, kat, win with marver, classmates and schoolmates - alice, manny, jerry, amihan with jimmy, dale, babie, tylette, and my aksitants - cha and jie

i had lots of guests who werent able to make it ... and here's to name a few of them, officemates - mamu and chito, rey and candy, ranil, aris and classmates - benits, joey, paeng, boboy ....

pics to follow

Food Notes --- Bahay Kubo at Maginhawa

Their specialty is Bulalo and Ulo-ulo

two dishes i rather like so ever since i saw the sign ... i've been wanting to eat there...
see we go to Tagaytay to have satisfying Bulalo - which is rather far

the place is small and feels like the old-fashioned carinderias that we find in Manila (or Quiapo)
simple tables, plain chairs, with no particular ambiance.

the food though tastes like home cooking, not as good as my mom's or my lola's who had excellent cooking skills (oh yes, i still remember the taste of all the food they've ever cooked except Dinuguan, Kilawin Librillo, and the Lungs dish - i dont eat any of these dishes)

we - had dinner with Alice and Manny - who were celebrating their wedding anniversary (14 August) a day ahead - had 2 servings of tawilis - nicely crispy so we ate it like chicharon, bulalo and ulo-ulo of course, bistek tagalog (i thought it needed a few more onions), and chicken curry.

not much choice for desert so we   stopped by etc. for some bubble tea.

it was one of those nice cool evenings

Food trip -Chicken burger when i dont want to cook in Maginhawa

Naturally,  this would fall on delivered goods.

i like burger so i've tried everything burger out there

For example, there's Burger Project - the one i go to is along Maginhawa. I like the fact that one can have jalapenos, Or take Big, Better, Best Burgers.  I like the char-broiled ones..........

but well, let us face it, beef is heavy on the stomach.  So i remembered that there's Good Burgers
you have a choice of chicken patties or veggie patties.

i prefer the chicken patties.  i like my veggies to look like veggies although i have enjoyed vegetarian restos.
so here's the menu for Good Burgers

Burger Name                                                                        good         better      best
Just Burger                                                                             70             80           95
(mayo, ketchup)
Garlic Burger                                                                          90             100         115
(coleslaw, bq sauce)
Salsa Mex - yes with coleslaw so + 15                            90             100         115
(salsa, cheese)
Cheesy Mushroom                                                                90             100         115
(mushrooms, cheese bq sauce)
Silly Burger                                                                              90             100         115
(sour cream, garlic chilli, cheese)
Persian Burger - yes                                                              90             100         115
(roasted onions and peppers, garlic aloli sauce)
BLT - yes                                                                                  105            115         120
(cheese, mayo, bacon bits, lettuce, tomatoes, onions)
Bacon Mozza Melt  -yes                                                      110            120         135
(bacon bits, mozzarella, mayo)
Margherita Burger  - yes                                                      110            120         135
(roasted tomatoes, cheese, mozzarella, basil)

3-Cheeses                                                                                  110            120         135
(cream cheese, mozzarella, cheese sauce)

you can add on stuff - choose one for the peso value listed on the left 

like for 15 pesos - salsa; garlic chili; alolli sauce; bbq sauce; mushrooms, coleslaw; lettuce, tomato, mayo

for 20 pesos - bacon bits; sour cream; herb cheese; garlic cream cheese

for 25 pesos - cottage cheese, mozzarella

the telephone at the Maginhawa place IS 435-4663

those marked with yes are burgers i've eaten and enjoyed -

and well, thought you might enjoy it too.

and THEY DELIVER!  at least to where i live, and where i work 

try it

i didnt list the side dishes but i like the chx and chips too

A short, partial list of food places we''ve been

Roberta's Flavors of Asia - Maginhawa Street - cant remember when

The ambiance is that of a canteen, but the food is good.
we had the lamb, the 3-choice appetizer, and of course, the watermelon tinola, and the shrimp salad.
the price is terrific for the pocket, and the taste is superior,

i've been able to duplicate the shrimp salad - although mine is a bit more tangier, something i did deliberately.

Scorecard:  Food a 7, Place a 5

Chercio - 76 Scout Limbaga, Morato area
Sometime Feb or March this year

The food was good. I especially liked the platter, because it allowed a smattering of  the different dishes. The tadyang was pretty good, too.  Dessert was alright.
The plac was another one of those white places, some with black couches and white wooden chairs

Scorecard:    8, 7

Nomama - Scout Tuason, near Morato

after the hype we received about this resto, my friends and i were excited about eating there.

The place was interesting    =   bright, all glass, sparkly

unfortunaely the food didnt live up to the hype.  The food was just
The best dish - and we spent a lot of money there - was shrimpt temputa, an old standby with me

Mesa - 254 Tomas Morato cor. Scount Fernandez.  Sharon Cuneta is part owner?

The place  comes across yellow-gold, but if you look around, you will find that the resto is no longer new.  The wait staff are equipped with tiny that holds a lighter (for those diners who need a light), pencils for taking orders, and a small pad. i just found it interesting.

The food was alright, and we indeed got catfish in a food - a signature dish.  But Muang Thai's catfish still beats the flavor.  I had to mix several sauces to complement the catfish better, and when i got it, i asked my friends to add it to the catfish.

i rather liked the butterflied tilapia, liking its crispy texture.  

Quezon - Maginhawa

Quezon favorites are available here to take home.  The smoked tapa is very good, but dont buy too much of it to take home because you will lose the flavor with satiety.

More next time -

Food Trip - Renato's Resto located at South Triangle Barangay

Renato's.  17B Scout Borromeo. South Triangle Barangay. QC

The place is beautiful, lots of white surfaces and a rather nice inviting alcove.

This is a good place for a small wedding reception, or a small batch reunion or a small party.  It would look fabulous with flowers for a wedding reception - and the white surfaces can only complement whatever color scheme of the bridal party.

When you enter the place, the left side has a large mirror atop a built-in table with large vases. Reminds of Thailand, probably because of the plants - which i've seen in Thailand.  This alcove has a very unusual shape, but very attractive and draws one eye towards a white wall - must have been feng shui when the place was still a home.  There's a bar on the right side and a music box on the left - would have been nice to have a piano bar, but well, the music was alright. the chairs were done in padded creamy gold and matted orange.

and then there's the food.

we had okoy - which was so-so, tawilis - which was very good, thai spring rolls - ho-hum, i think, crispy catfish - which was rather dry. Muang Thai (behind Heart Center) still holds the record for the best catfish in town for us , Fish balls a la Kieve - which had a very intriguing taste, stuffed chicken - which i didnt like at all and Crispy Pata - which was not as crispy as Ana Lisa's although the flavor was alright.

The score, from 1 - 10, 10 being perfect - it would score an average 6-7.

One thing though. The Groupon AD is NOT accurate about the prices.

New Year Eats 2014.....yummy; cooked by yours truly

Food trip - Ilocano food: Victorino's and Comida Ilocandia

weekend start.

we went to Heny Sison's Victorino's at Jamboree cor. Rallos

my friend Dale had her birthday last month, but she was off the country and we couldnt manage to meet

except for last Friday.  Our friend Jer chose the resto, as he's hip about new restos.

the ambiance at Victorino's was okay. i like the white walls, and the block of yellow tiles, and the easy comfort of the chairs, which was a surprise, really because they were simple chairs.

Click here for Victorino's menu

we had lots of food, all good, but i have tasted better.

we had the following
Pako, Warek-warek, Lomolomo, Karabasa soup, Longanisa Platter, Bagnet (of course)

First of all, i have tasted authentic Ilocano food, there in the heart of Marcos country - Batac. And well, that is superior Ilocano food. Cooked Bagnet there is uber delicious, if a trifle bad for the heart.  and the orange lumpia thing - i forgot what they are called .....Empanaditos

in comparison with Comida Ilocandia located along Timog

Comida Ilocandia

Timog Branch
33-D , Timog Ave, Quezon City (Infront of McDonald)

Tel. 709, 9041, 0918-925660

Click here for Comida Elocandia's menu

more next time.  will update you on what we ate.....

food is one of my faves.  food for the body.  food for the soul. food for the heart. and food for the mind (books generally).

TGIF

i know this feeling well, and everyone i know celebrates it
have a good weekend

for me the weekend looms very quietly, a time to rest (the way Spock would, not the way Kirk would, in classic Trek), hopefully a time to cook -

i was planning on sinigang na something - bangus (milkfish) or baboy (pork)

i have kangkong, sili, and will get labanos (radish), and maybe some gabi (i dont quite remember the English term for this)

i know my doc would prefer it were boneless bangus instead of pork, bangus belly would be good but my cardio told me it isnt all that good, being omega-3 NOT omega-6 unlike wild salmon, which is omega-6.

 yes, i get these gems everytime i have my checkup.

i am also planning on shrimp omelets

this is just an egg omelet with garlic (i love garlic, freshly pound into bits), patola, onions (i prefer the red ones), and shrimps, which i prefer to cut up into pieces so one can taste the shrimp all over the omelet.

yum. so i hope i dont feel too tired ,,,, and that someone comes over to assist me

i have to do the usual, wash clothes (throw them into the washer, yep, even the expensive ones), and i segregate as one should. and i change the bed linens, and clean my room and bath.  *sigh*

then i have to shop and buy some water pipes for my PT ... this is to relax the muscles

and if i am lucky, i get to eat tapadera.  lovely beef- which i really really love, with potatoes and onion rings.

and my fave activity. read.  i am re-reading my clancy books, at least the Jack Ryan ones.

Happy Mother's Day....

to all moms, would-be moms, and those that are-were like moms

how do you show someone  you love them?

mainly by being there - to discuss things, to assist when needed, to argue when necessary, and to hug
i loved hugging my mom.  she was smaller than me and that made it just perfect for hugs

we filipinos arent into saying i love yous, we are more into doing ...

my mom is a great cook, and it gave me pleasure to treat her to great food she didnt cook
especially her  favorite kakanin
or buy a dress she would look good in but didnt need

she would say it especially on my birthday by cooking pancit palabok
her palabok is the best i have ever had - par excellance bar none - same as my lola's

2 Foodtrips at Maginhawa and a resto near SSS

we've had several visits to Maginhawa since then ...

we went to Krazy Tonkatsu - where they serve a rather limited Japanese menu, all of which were tasty.
well, we tasted each other's food, that is how we know.  but, if you have a hankering for sweets after meals, they dont really have desserts.

and just yesterday we had an early birthday celebration of a classmate at Sancho-Churreria, 122 Maginhawa.  we had paella (they have at least 2 sizes so it depends on the size of your party/group) and then we had beef stew, which i liked because i like the onions.  We also had lengua, a favorite of several members of the party, and then we had fish wish mash potatoes.  i've had better mash potatoes, but that was done at home, following rachel ray's recipe.

the resto near SSS was called Linkin' Pork
they had lemonade that tasted as if there was sukang paombong - very good for the throat it seems, but be careful - it is an acquired taste.
i had the thursday special ... which was Shish Kebab, which was rather good. my friend had the combination sausage and salad.  She tried the Cincinnati sausage.  it was not quite to my taste but the third member of our party put mustard (it came with the dish) and it was tons better.  So beware this sausage if you do not like mustard.  The salad was fresh, and crispy.  it was very good.
i plan to taste a few more things, but particularly their all-day breakfast fare with vigan and lukban sausages.

i just have to space out all these eating because it is very bad for my diet

Food Trip at Maginhawa - Quezon

my friends like eating out.  actually, who doesnt?
they met me at a place called Quezon.  and this place is also along Maginhawa .....
more or less near Bayantel.

i love the stuff you can eat there, plus, what you can take home - products from Quezon actually.

i liked the dried tapa.  Just the thing for breakfast.  only. dont overdo it.

A day to see friends

Saturday, 5 January turned out to be a day to see friends


Lunch time - i met up with my Stat classmates .....

Leorey Marquez, who is based in Australia - and here to visit his mom as well as present to the College of Engineering disaster models - particularly those to do with dams, and thus flooding.  too bad i cant attend as it falls on a workday.

Mel Bernardo with his wife Miriam. Mel works at Metrobank with Joan - and i found out that 55 was the mandatory retirement age for Metrobank! 

 

Mel, Leorey (looking off camera), and me.....

 

with Miriam, the wife of Mel

and for dinner, Ofelia Martin Templo invited us - Emily and Chito Ferrer, Hermie, and Ging de la Paz, and me to dinner at .... King Bee - right across St. Peter (Hermie could actually walk to the place!).  

I had told Ofie that i could not drive so she offered to pick me up.  I told her i lived too far but she said ok lang so then i agreed.  i wanted a chance to see and talk with her again.  I told her it was difficult to go to the corner to get a cab and i needed advanced warning (a day or 2 at least) to arrange a driver so she asked me how i went to work.  i told her i had a service - have someone pick me up and bring me home.  weekends, i have someone get me a taxi if i need to go anywhere - as i have someone come in during weekends but last weekend, my assistant had the flu and couldnt make it to the house.  

my car has very low mileage - and it has traveled to Pagodpod way up there in Ilocos, Ligao in Bicol, Baguio - where we almost had the head-on collision due to a stupid driver going up to Baguio who overtook on a blind curve.  oops, i digress.

Ging couldnt make it to dinner as they were having a special event at their house.  

we had a very good time.  Ofie showed the pictures of her grandkids and Junjun's (or Jutes in his business cards - he owns Gino's, a pizza joint named after his son, located near Merriam College) daughter is just the cutest!  *sigh*

Ofie kindly brought me home and i was very glad Bernard (the youngest son of HTT and Ofie) texted his mom if she could fetch him at Centris.  At least, Centris wasnt too far off from the house.

It was very good to see Ofie, and i was really very happy to see pictures of her grandkids.  they are just the cutest.

Chito and Emily (accidentally hidden behind me), Herms, Ofie

here's a better picture of us, particular Mamu (Emily Ferrer)

At least my gladiator braces cant be seen in any of the pictures.  i call that successful dressing!

New Year - A Blessed 2013 to ALL

bread, coke, sparkling grape juice, mead, quezo de bola

the fruit salad, the cheese pimiento (queensland butter, quezo de bola, relish, pimiento), Santi's sweet ham, the Provident sliced ham, the NY quezo de bola, veg ham, embo

more of the same, plus the roast beef with potatoes, carrots, bellpeppers

with my soup - malagkit with tripe, luya, kasubha, young onions

Drinking, eating, and there's my turkey

New Year Noche Buena.  I was in bed reading until the clock struck 15 before midnight and then i opened all the lights (a tradition at home) and then  i set the table, and  ate and drunk.  Then i cleaned up.  Read some more until about 2am. went to sleep and then woke up, went thru my ablutions, then to mass.

A Blessed 2013

Taking care of oneself - the first order of business

taking care of business.

first the self.      
the main business of all individuals - is taking care of one's self.
it is not being selfish. it is being sensible as no one has a more vested interest

first up.  health.
my lifestyle MD has this to say
your plate should contain 1/2 veggies, 1/4 carbo (rice or bread), 1/4 protein (meat)
exercise should be at least 1.5 hours/week - at least 3x a week
walking is better than running/jogging - has to do with your feet and the impact of your weight on your feet and knees

and if you have prescriptions. do take them and make sure you always have at least 2 days supply left before you purchase again.  if you no longer want to take your meds, see your physician first.

DE-stress everyday. Stress kills.

2nd up. finances
make plans for enjoying life.  life is not just about working.
work to live. NOT live to work.

plan as if you will live forever.  live as if it each day is your last

have a back-up plan.

will you leave footsteps when you are gone?